President Obama railed against Republicans on Thursday for “licking their chops” and using a spike in gas prices as a political opportunity.

Appearing at the University of Miami in a high-profile speech on energy, Obama aimed to deflect the criticism his administration has received for its energy policies and for higher gas prices.

Obama sought to telegraph a message that he is doing all he can to improve energy policy while accusing Republicans of politicizing the issue.

“Only in politics do people greet bad news so enthusiastically,” Obama said before a crowd of students.

“You pay more and they’re licking their chops? And you can bet since it’s an election year, they’re already dusting off their three-point plans for $2 gas. I’ll save you the suspense: step one is drill, step two is drill, and step three is keep drilling.

RELATED ARTICLES•Obama: GOP 'licking their chops' over high gas prices“We heard the same thing in 2007 when I was running for president,” he continued. “We hear the same thing every year. We’ve heard the same thing for 30 years.”

But Obama said “the American people aren’t stupid” and continued to emphasize that drilling isn’t the only solution to fixing the nation’s energy problems, “especially since we’re already drilling.”

“It’s a bumper sticker,” Obama said. “It’s not a strategy to solve our energy challenge. It’s a strategy to get politicians through an election.

“You know there are no quick fixes to this problem and you know we can’t just drill our way to lower gas prices,” he said. “If we’re going to take control of our energy future, if we’re going to avoid these gas price spikes down the line, then we need a sustained, all-of-the-above strategy that develops every available source of American energy — oil, gas, wind solar, nuclear, bio-fuels and more.”

Republicans — both on Capitol Hill and on the campaign trail — believe Obama is vulnerable to attacks on the high gas prices.

Obama’s speech comes after gas prices rose 3.3 cents nationwide overnight, costing consumers an average of $3.61 a gallon, according to AAA.

Republicans also point to Obama’s decision to reject the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline. The White House argues Republicans forced Obama to deny a permit with a timeframe that did not give the administration adequate time to conduct an environmental and health review.

The GOP has hammered Obama on the issue, arguing he is standing in the way of expanded drilling, and GOP presidential candidates have vowed to lower gas prices.

But federal policymakers have very few options to lower gas prices in the short term, according to experts. Gas prices are largely tethered to oil prices, which are set on global markets. Even a dramatic expansion of domestic oil-and-gas production would have little short-term effect on gas prices.

Still, Obama said he has instructed his administration “to look for every single area where we can make an impact and help consumers in the months ahead, from permitting to delivery bottlenecks to what’s going on in the oil markets.”

“And we will keep taking as many steps as we can in the coming weeks,” he added.

While calling for a broad plan, the president also stressed the importance of increased oil-and-gas production, a move meant to counter GOP claims that the president has limited domestic drilling.

“Now, we absolutely need safe, responsible oil production here in America,” Obama said. “That’s why under my administration, America is producing more oil today than at any time in the last eight years.”

The federal Energy Information Administration said last month that domestic oil production increased from 5.1 million barrels per day in 2007 to 5.5 million barrels per day in 2010. That number is expected to increase to 6.7 million barrels per day in 2020, the highest level since 1994.

Foreign oil imports into the United States are also expected to drop from 49 percent of liquid fuel consumption in 2010 to 36 percent in 2035. Additional oil savings are expected as a result of the administration’s new vehicle fuel economy regulations, the agency said.

Republicans argue the administration doesn’t deserve credit — they say the increase is the result of actions by previous administrations coupled with advances in technology and increased drilling on state and private lands.

The president again took aim at a slew of tax breaks for oil and natural-gas companies, bashing Republicans and oil-state Democrats for opposing bills to eliminate them.

“It’s outrageous. It’s inexcusable,” Obama said. “And every politician who’s been fighting to keep these subsidies in place should explain to the American people why the oil industry needs more of their money. Especially at a time like this.”

The president outlined a plan to cut $39 billion worth of tax breaks during the next decade in his fiscal 2013 budget request. The president echoed the plan in a tax reform framework unveiled by the Treasury Department Wednesday.

Before his speech, Obama toured the university’s Industrial Assessment Center, where students are taught to become industrial energy-efficiency experts as they help small- to mid-sized manufacturers reduce their energy costs.

The center — in swing-state Florida — is one of 24 nationwide facilities across the nation and is part of the Department of Energy’s Industrial Assessment Program, White House officials said.

While he’s in the battleground state, his 14th visit to Florida since taking office, Obama will attend a string of fundraisers, two in Miami and one in Orlando, in the heart of the crucial I-4 corridor where many of the state’s independent voters live.

President Barack Obama hit back on Thursday at election-year Republican criticism of his energy policy, offering a staunch defense of his attempts to wean Americans off foreign oil and saying there was no 'silver bullet' for high gas prices.

CNBC

President Barack Obama addresses a Miami University audience on Thursday, Feb. 23. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Obama sought to deflect growing Republican attacks over rising prices at the pump, blaming recent increases on a mix of factors beyond his control, including tensions with Iran, hot demand from China, India and other emerging economies, and Wall Street speculators taking advantage of the uncertainty.

U.S. gasoline prices have jumped nearly 9 cents in the past week to an average $3.61 a gallon, and are expected to rise further toward the $4 mark through the summer driving season and the approach of the Nov. 6 election.

In a visit to the University of Miami less than nine months before the presidential election in which he will seek a second term, Obama offered a modest series of proposals aimed at diversifying Americans' fuel supplies and increasing energy efficiency.

"It's the easiest thing in the world (to) make phony election-year promises about lower gas prices,'' Obama said.

"What's harder is to make a serious, sustained commitment to tackle a problem that may not be solved in one year or one term or even one decade.''

Republicans seeking to dislodge Obama from the White House are seeking to pin the higher prices on the Democratic president's tax and environmental policies they say have hindered domestic production and kept the United States at the mercy of imports. They cite his decision to block the Keystone pipeline that would transport Canadian oil to refineries in Texas.

Repeating there would be no "silver bullet'' for America's energy crunch, Obama highlighted steps already taken to expand domestic production and improve fuel efficiency.

The trio of proposals announced in Miami included a $30 million competition in natural gas technologies and a $14 million program to development algae-based fuel.

Obama repeated calls to roll back tax incentives for the oil industry, and urged Congress to renew a clean energy tax credit. Yet he acknowledged he was at odds with Republicans in Congress over energy.

Lawmakers are deeply divided and little legislative action is expected this year.

Obama: Calls for more drilling are a 'bumper sticker', not an energy planYahoo Finance ^ | 02/23/2012 | Jim Kuhnhenn

President Barack Obama on Thursday assailed Republicans for what he described as a flawed and dishonest strategy for reducing gas prices, predicting his rivals would offer nothing but more drilling and political promises of $2-a-gallon gas. Said the president: "The American people aren't stupid."

"That's not a plan, especially since we're already drilling. That's a bumper sticker," Obama said in a stop at the University of Miami. "It's not a strategy to solve our energy challenge. That's a strategy to get politicians through an election. You know there are no quick fixes to this problem."

Obama spoke as gas has reached the highest price at the pump ever for this time of year: an average of $3.58 per gallon. White House advisers see it as a cyclical occurrence but knew Obama had to address the topic, one of deep concern to consumers and growing fodder for Republicans seeking to unseat Obama.

Obama said gas prices were "like a tax straight out of their paychecks." He promoted an energy agenda of oil, gas, wind, solar, nuclear and biofuel energy. And he took aim at Republicans.

"You can bet that since it's an election year, they're already dusting off their three-point plans for $2 gas. I'll save you the suspense: Step one is to drill, step two is to drill, and step three is to keep drilling. ... We've heard the same thing for thirty years. Well, the American people aren't stupid."

Obama insisted there are no short-term solutions to high gas prices, and that anyone suggesting otherwise was not being honest. Still, he sought to offer something to anxious voters by saying he had ordered his administration to search for every possible area to help consumers in the coming months.

U.S. President Obama told an audience in Florida Thursday Republicans are saying "drill, drill, drill," but that's not an energy plan, it's a "bumper sticker."

The president said it was critical to develop diverse energy resources.

He also attacked government subsidies for oil companies.

"Four billion dollars," Obama said. "These are the same oil companies that have been making record profits off the money you spend at the pump. And now they deserve another $4 billion from us?

"It's outrageous. It's inexcusable. And every politician who's been fighting to keep these subsidies in place should explain to the American people why the oil industry needs more of their money. Especially at a time like this."

At the "energy event" at the University of Miami, Obama said: "Right now, we're experiencing yet another painful reminder of why developing new energy is so critical to our future. Just like last year, gas prices are climbing across the country -- except this time, even earlier. And that hurts everyone."

President Barack Obama hit back on Thursday at election-year Republican criticism of his energy policies, offering a staunch defense of his attempts to wean Americans off foreign oil and saying there is no "silver bullet" for high gasoline prices.

Obama sought to deflect growing Republican attacks over rising prices at the pump, blaming recent increases on a mix of factors beyond his control, including tensions with Iran, hot demand from China, India and other emerging economies, and Wall Street speculators taking advantage of the uncertainty.

U.S. gasoline prices have jumped nearly 9 cents in the past week to an average of $3.61 a gallon, and are expected to rise further toward the crucial $4 mark through the summer driving season and the approach of the November 6 election.

White House Press secretary Jay Carney today reminded reporters that prior to President Obama's term in office, the Bush administration was responsible for the tumultuous lengthy engagement in Afghanistan.

"The president made clear when he was a candidate for this office and when he took this office, that unfortunately prior to his taking office, because of the focus on Iraq, and the U.S. efforts there, that the original war, if you will, in Afghanistan had been neglected, the strategy there was unclear, and that it was not properly resourced," said Carney, adding that the U.S. goals in Afghanistan would be met with President Obama's "clear eyed" policy.

President Obama sought to convince the crowd at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference today that “when the chips are down, I have Israel’s back.”

He also placed blame on the Bush administration for letting Iran become the threat it is today, claiming that a policy of putting pressure on Iran was “in tatters” when he took office.

“If during this political season you hear some question my administration’s support for Israel, remember that it’s not backed up by the facts,” the president said.

He also said he has “no apologies” for pursuing the Middle East peace process, which is effectively stalled, while continually pressing that he is a friend of Israel.

“As you examine my commitment, you don’t just have to count on my words,” Obama said. “You can look at my deeds. Because over the last three years, as president of the United States, I have kept my commitments to the state of Israel. At every crucial juncture – at every fork in the road – we have been there for Israel. Every single time.”

“When the Goldstone report unfairly singled out Israel for criticism, we challenged it,” he continued. “When Israel was isolated in the aftermath of the flotilla incident, we supported them. When the Durban conference was commemorated, we boycotted it, and we will always reject the notion that Zionism is racism. When one-sided resolutions are brought up at the Human Rights Council, we oppose them. When Israeli diplomats feared for their lives in Cairo, we intervened to help save them. When there are efforts to boycott or divest from Israel, we will stand against them. And whenever an effort is made to de-legitimize the state of Israel, my Administration has opposed them.

“So there should not be a shred of doubt by now: when the chips are down, I have Israel’s back.”

It was after this that Obama moved on to the topic over which the president is expected to clash with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — Monday night’s gala speaker here — over these few days: Iran.

“Four years ago, I made a commitment to the American people, and said that we would use all elements of American power to pressure Iran and prevent it from acquiring a nuclear weapon,” Obama said. “That is what we have done.”

He claimed that when he took office, the George W. Bush administration had left “the efforts to apply pressure on Iran …in tatters.”

“And so from my first months in office, we put forward a very clear choice to the Iranian regime: a path that would allow them to rejoin the community of nations if they meet their international obligations, or a path that leads to an escalating series of consequences if they don’t,” Obama said. “Our policy of engagement – quickly rebuffed by the Iranian regime – allowed us to rally the international community as never before; to expose Iran’s intransigence; and to apply pressure that goes far beyond anything that the United States could do on our own.”

Because of his administration, the commander in chief said, “Iran is isolated, its leadership divided and under pressure.”

He said that he still believes that there can be a diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear crisis.

“The United States and Israel both assess that Iran does not yet have a nuclear weapon, and we are exceedingly vigilant in monitoring their program,” Obama said. “Now, the international community has a responsibility to use the time and space that exists.”

The crowd was largely quiet during these comments.

The president acknowledged that there are “no guarantees” that Tehran “will make the right choice,” as suggested by the Islamic Republic’s history.

“I have said that when it comes to preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, I will take no options off the table, and I mean what I say. That includes all elements of American power,” Obama said. “A political effort aimed at isolating Iran; a diplomatic effort to sustain our coalition and ensure that the Iranian program is monitored; an economic effort to impose crippling sanctions; and, yes, a military effort to be prepared for any contingency.”

“Iran’s leaders should know that I do not have a policy of containment; I have a policy to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon,” he added, receiving a standing ovation from much of the audience. “And as I’ve made clear time and again during the course of my presidency, I will not hesitate to use force when it is necessary to defend the United States and its interests.”

He asked the crowd to remember the “weightiness” of the issue when considering how to confront Iran.

“For the sake of Israel’s security, America’s security, and the peace and security of the world, now is not the time for bluster; now is the time to let our increased pressure sink in, and to sustain the broad international coalition that we have built,” he said.

Obama said the two countries “may not agree on every single issue … but we agree on the big things.”

President Barack Obama blamed Fox News for his political woes in a private meeting with labor leaders in 2010, saying he was “losing white males” who tune into the cable outlet and “hear Obama is a Muslim 24/7,” according to journalist David Corn’s new book, “Showdown.”

In “Showdown: The Inside Story of How Obama Fought Back Against Boehner, Cantor, and the Tea Party” — which hits bookstores on Tuesday — the Washington bureau chief for Mother Jones chronicles the White House from the 2010 midterm elections to the start of the 2012 campaign. The book focuses on key moments of Obama’s presidency, such as Osama bin Laden’s assassination, the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, the Arab Spring, the debt ceiling crisis, and the president’s dealings with Congress.

Corn writes that after the midterm elections, Obama told labor leaders in December 2010 that he held Fox partly responsible for him “losing white males.”

“…Fed by Fox News, they hear Obama is a Muslim 24/7, and it begins to seep in…The Republicans have been at this for 40 years. They have new resources, but the strategy is old,” Corn recounted Obama as saying.

Obama shifted his own tactics in 2011, Corn writes, moving from compromising with Republicans to challenging the tea party. The president, senior adviser David Plouffe and other top administration officials plotted a “secret strategy” — by not unveiling a specific deficit reduction plan and not instantly challenging the House Republicans’ budget cuts — to “draw the GOP into a trap.”

The book also highlights some of the administration’s battles on the economy. Corn writes that when then President’s Council of Economic Advisers chair Christina Romer advocated for more stimulus in a fall 2009 meeting, Obama said, “I can’t get it done. Don’t you understand that?”

And in a meeting with an adviser after the 2010 midterm elections, Obama slammed corporate executives for attacking him.

“I saved these guys when the economy was falling off a cliff,” Obama said, according to Corn. “Now I get nothing but their venom.”

But Obama was more optimistic about his policies the morning after the 2010 election, telling aides he planned to get a tax deal, extend unemployment benefits, ratify the new START treaty, repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, and pass the DREAM Act and a children’s nutrition bill in the following two months. David Axelrod told Corn he remembered, “We all looked at each other quizzically, ‘What does he see that we don’t?’”

The book goes on to detail how Obama achieved some success in several of his policy aims, such as his outmaneuvering of Sen. John McCain to win the START ratification and his deal to end Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell by letting Defense Secretary Robert Gates and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen control how the repeal would be enforced.

And in the budget negotiations of 2011, Obama and then budget chief Jack Lew decided to let House Speaker John Boehner win budget cuts to appease tea partiers in Congress, but Lew negotiated in order to control the impacts on important programs and “in a way, snooker the Republicans,” according to Corn.

Still, after Obama gave a speech in April 2011 calling the House Republican budget a “pessimistic” vision of the United States’ future, the administration ordered Cabinet secretaries and top officials to dial back the rhetoric. “The president is not wild about his message now,” a top Obama adviser said at the time.

"Obviously we wish Solyndra hadn't gone bankrupt. Part of the reason they did was the Chinese were subsidizing their solar industry and flooding the market in ways Solyndra couldn't compete. But understand, this was not our program per se."

-- President Obama talking to National Public Radio's "Marketplace."

President Obama is on a swing-state campaign blitz this week, looking to stifle voter anger over high energy prices. While the White House is casting the trip as an effort to lay out Obama's vision for future energy abundance, much of the message is aimed at reducing the supply of blame.

In an interview with Marketplace.org (full audio), President Obama defends using U.S. taxpayer money to invest in solar energy projects. During the interview, Obama was asked about Solyndra, one of the more well-known solar panel companies that failed after receiving a loan guarantee from the Department of Energy.

However, Obama told Marketplace that "this was not our program." Obama attempts to make the case that this falls on the lap of Congress because they put together the loan guarantee program. Read the transcript below.

Marketplace's Kai Ryssdal : With all respect, it was kind of a gutsy move I think to come to a solar facility. Your administration has staked a lot on clean technology, green jobs. The biggest item most people know about that strategy is, of course, a company named Solyndra, which your administration gave loan guarantees to, that then went bankrupt and has been the subject of many investigations. Are you doing your "all of the above" strategy right if that's what we have to show for it -- Solyndra?

Obama: We are doing the "all of the above" strategy right. Obviously, we wish Solyndra hadn't gone bankrupt. Part of the reason they did was because the Chinese were subsidizing their solar industry and flooding the market in ways that Solyndra couldn't compete. But understand: This was not our program, per se. Congress -- Democrats and Republicans -- put together a loan guarantee program because they understood historically that when you get new industries, it's easy to raise money for startups, but if you want to take them to scale, oftentimes there's a lot of risk involved, and what the loan guarantee program was designed to do was to help start up companies get to scale. And the understanding is is that some companies are not going to succeed, some companies will do very well -- but the portfolio as a whole ends up supporting the kind of innovation that helps make America successful in this innovative 21st century economy.

Do I wish that Solyndra had gone bankrupt? Absolutely not. And obviously it's heartbreaking what happened to the workers who were there. When you look at the overall portfolio, is it right for us to make sure that we're not just cashing in our chips and letting the Chinese or the Germans develop the technologies that we know are going to be critical in the future? I'm proud to say that we're going to continue to support it.

Obama on Solyndra Loan: ‘This Was Not Our Program’Blames 'Congress' and 'the Chinese' for firm’s failure

BY: Andrew Stiles - March 22, 2012 11:08 am

President Obama denied culpability for the failure of solar firm Solyndra in a radio interview on Tuesday, instead pinning the blame on Congress and the Chinese.

The loans initiative used to finance Solyndra was “not our program,” he told American Public Media in response to question about Solyndra’s bankruptcy and subsequent controversy.

“Understand, this was not our program per se,” Obama said. “Congress–Democrats and Republicans–put together a loan guarantee program…to help start-up companies get to scale.”

APM: With all respect, it was a gutsy move I think to come to a solar facility. Your administration has staked a lot on clean technology, green jobs – the biggest item most people know about that strategy is, of course, a company named Solyndra, which your administration gave loan guarantees to, then went bankrupt and has been the subject of many investigations. Are you doing your ‘all of the above’ strategy right if that’s what we have to show for it, Solyndra?

OBAMA: We are doing the all of the above strategy right. Obviously, we wish Solyndra hadn’t gone bankrupt. Part of the reason they did was because the Chinese were subsidizing their solar industry and flooding the market in ways that Solyndra couldn’t compete. But understand, this was not our program per se.

Congress–Democrats and Republicans–put together a loan guarantee program because they understood historically that when you get new industries–it’s easy to raise money for start-ups, but if you want to take them to scale sometimes there’s a lot of risk involved, and what the loan guarantee program was designed to do was to help start-up companies get to scale. And the understanding is that some companies are not going to succeed, some companies are going to do very well, but the portfolio as a whole ends up supporting the kind of innovation that helps make America successful in this innovative 21st century economy. Do I wish that Solyndra had gone bankrupt? Absolutely not. And obviously it’s heartbreaking it happened for the workers who were there.

Obama has previously argued that the Department of Energy program used to finance a $535 million federal loan guarantee to Solyndra “predates” his presidency.

That’s an exaggeration of the truth, according to FactCheck.org: “Solyndra’s loan guarantee came under another program created by the president’s 2009 stimulus for companies developing ‘commercially available technologies.’”

This entry was posted in Obama Administration, Video and tagged Solyndra. Bookmark the permalink.

Plausible deniability: Obama’s hands were all over SolyndraThe Washington Times ^ | March 22, 2012 | by Henry D'Andrea Posted on March 22, 2012 8:05:47 PM EDT by Oldeconomybuyer

President Barack Obama today once again thwarted honesty to claim that the failed solar energy company, Solyndra, was not the administration’s program, “per se.”

In an interview with Marketplace.org, the president pivoted from taking the blame for the failed Solyndra deal and instead blamed its rupture on Congress.

What Obama left out of that interview was the immense payday Obama campaign bundlers and investors received from the Solyndra loan deal. Something that the Obama administration had huge participation in.

At the time of its announcement, the Solyndra loan was a disgusting and unethical smokescreen designed to propagandize the American electorate into thinking Obama was serious about job creation and lowering the cost of gas via new energy solutions.

However, when you look deep behind the scenes into the Solyndra loan, you see a much different story. A story of blatant crony capitalism.

President Obama’s Hall of Blameby Keith Koffler on March 23, 2012, 9:18 am

President Obama has passed the buck to others – mainly George W. Bush – for no less than a dozen problems that characterize his presidency, suggesting time and again that his own policies are not to blame for his difficulties and he is simply doing the best that can be done with the cards he was dealt.

Even so, Obama is aggressively staking a claim for successes for which Bush shares significant or nearly all responsibility, including increased drilling for oil and natural gas, the end of the Iraq War, and the killing of Osama Bin Laden.

What follows is a roster of Obama’s efforts to assign blame for 12 problems that prevail or have faced him during his presidency. In several cases, the quotes here are just one or two of many that show Obama passing the buck on a particular issue.

Solyndra

“Obviously, we wish Solyndra hadn’t gone bankrupt. Part of the reason they did was because the Chinese were subsidizing their solar industry and flooding the market in ways that Solyndra couldn’t compete. But understand, this was not our program per se. Congress–Democrats and Republicans–put together a loan guarantee program.”

- March 22, 2012

Afghanistan

“When I came into office there has been drift in the Afghanistan strategy, in part because we had spent a lot of time focusing on Iraq instead. Over the last three years we have refocused attention on getting Afghanistan right. Would my preference had been that we started some of that earlier? Absolutely. But that’s not the cards that were dealt. We’re now in a position where, given our starting point, we’re making progress.”

- March 14, 2012

Iran

“When I took office, the efforts to apply pressure on Iran were in tatters. Iran had gone from zero centrifuges spinning to thousands, without facing broad pushback from the world. In the region, Iran was ascendant.”

- March 4, 2012

The Economy

“We’ve made sure to do everything we can to dig ourselves out of this incredible hole that I inherited.”

- February 23, 2012

The Deficit:

“We thought that it was entirely appropriate for our governments and our agencies to try to root out waste, large and small, in a systematic way. Obviously, this is even more important given the deficits that we’ve inherited and that have grown as a consequence of this recession.”

- November 9, 2011

“When I first walked through the door, the deficit stood at $1.3 trillion, with projected deficits of $8 trillion over the next decade. If we had taken office during ordinary times, we would have started bringing down these deficits immediately.”

- February 1, 2010

The Debt:

“Look, we do have a serious problem in terms of debt and deficit, and much of it I inherited when I showed up.”

- August 8, 2011

“I inherited a big debt.”

- March 29, 2011

Unemployment:

“We inherited the worst recession since the Great Depression, a banking system on the verge of meltdown. We had lost 4 million jobs by the time I was sworn in and would then lose another 4 million in the few months right after I was sworn in before our economic policies had a chance to take root.”

- May 10, 2011

The BP Gulf Oil Spill

“In this instance, the oil industry’s cozy and sometimes corrupt relationship with government regulators meant little or no regulation at all. When Secretary Salazar took office, he found a Minerals and Management Service that had been plagued by corruption for years –- this was the agency charged with not only providing permits, but also enforcing laws governing oil drilling.”

- May 27, 2010

Decline of the nuclear stockpile

“Among the many challenges our administration inherited was the slow but steady decline in support for our nuclear stockpile and infrastructure, and for our highly trained nuclear work force.” (This one was offered up on Obama’s behalf by Vice President Biden).

- January 29, 2010

The Election of Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.)

“The same thing that swept Scott Brown into office swept me into office. People are angry, and they’re frustrated. Not just because of what’s happened in the last year or two years, but what’s happened over the last eight years.”

- January 20, 2010

Anti-Americanism

“I took office at a time when many around the world had come to view America with skepticism and distrust. Part of this was due to misperceptions and misinformation about my country. Part of this was due to opposition to specific policies, and a belief that on certain critical issues, America has acted unilaterally, without regard for the interests of others. And this has fed an almost reflexive anti-Americanism, which too often has served as an excuse for collective inaction.”

- September 23, 2009

The Financial Crisis

“We inherited a financial crisis unlike any that we’ve seen in our time. This crisis crippled private capital markets and forced us to take steps in our financial system — and with our auto companies — that we would not have otherwise even considered.”

Eh, what does this guy know about leadership, anyway? He’s only the most widely respected CEO of the last twenty years or so and the founder of a school that develops leaders in the business world, plus the author of a book or two on the subject. Former GE chief Jack Welch unloaded on Barack Obama yesterday for his chronic lack of leadership, manifest mainly through the ever-expanding universe of scapegoats that Obama cites for the failures of his economic policies. Welch thinks that Obama has become positively Nixonian — or maybe worse (via Instapundit):

“It was the insurance executives in health care. It was the bankers in the collapse. It was the oil companies as oil prices go up. It was Congress if things didn’t go the way he wanted. And recently it’s been the Supreme Court,” he said.

This week, President Barack Obama is taking the fight to "oil speculators" and "market manipulation" (nee "free enterprise"), demanding that traders put up more money for transactions and government ratchet up enforcement and monitoring. "None of these will bring gas prices down overnight," Obama helpfully explained in his news conference. "But they will prevent market manipulation and help protect consumers."

No, they won't. They'd probably hurt consumers, and they would doubtlessly raise the cost of doing business. So for a few hundred words, let's treat populist agitation as if it were earnest policy.

Let's start by being thankful for oil speculation -- no matter what the motivation of those involved might be. To begin with, speculation allows companies with exposure to fluctuating commodity prices to hedge against rising costs by locking in. Sometimes the bet pays off; other times it doesn't. But risk and profit are not yet crimes.

Oil speculation also offers consumers and investors information about the future that can help them make informed long-term decisions. Speculators trade commodities based on the information available in the marketplace. They reflect reality; they don't create it.

But sometimes, unfortunate as it is, prices will rise. "Gouging," the close scaremongering cousin of "speculation," helps persuade consumers not to use what they don't need. It incentivizes to modify behavior -- our driving habits or the size of our cars. We conserve more when prices are higher, so we avoid shortages, and producers intensify their production. (Funny how Democrats get this concept when writing energy policy designed to artificially spike fossil fuel prices.)

The president surely understands, as well. He knows that a fungible commodity's price is driven by demand and geopolitical events beyond the control of speculators or, for the most part, Washington. There are billions of people in China, India and elsewhere who are new consumers of oil -- and they are better off for it. We are better off for it.

Or put it this way: Natural gas prices are trading so cheaply that it's no longer profitable to drill for most companies. According to Businessweek, there are only 624 operating drills in the United States, the fewest since April 2002. So I guess natural gas speculators forgot to manipulate the world market this month. Or do oil manipulators only work part time? Confusing.

Where, after all, is the president's evidence that oil speculation is driving up oil prices? The White House "Fact Sheet" on the matter offers plenty of solutions to a problem it hasn't even proved exists. Why are we going to spend another $52 million -- and who-knows-what in political witch hunt trials -- on a theory that plays on assumptions and flourishes in the progressive blogosphere?

Obviously, much of this is driven by political realities and accusations by Republicans that the president isn't doing enough to curb rising oil prices. George W. Bush also talked about manipulation nonsense, and I'm sure it's gone on forever.

So it's also worth noting that Washington, regrettably enough, already has the power to enact the counterproductive regulations the president is asking for. Nothing needs to be passed. It was only last year when Obama formed a special task force designed to find manipulation in the oil market and to ferret out incidents of gas gouging.

It is rare when Washington gives a topic what it deserves. But the Oil and Gas Price Fraud Working Group has given the American people exactly what the topic deserves: zip.